Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) Short Interest Update

Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) saw a large decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 13th, there was short interest totaling 4,041,498 shares, a decline of 17.0% from the February 26th total of 4,870,686 shares. Approximately 2.7% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,346,384 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.0 days.

Stifel Financial Price Performance

Shares of SF opened at $70.74 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $78.13 and its 200-day moving average is $79.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The company has a market capitalization of $10.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.05 and a beta of 1.13. Stifel Financial has a fifty-two week low of $48.85 and a fifty-two week high of $89.83.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.63 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $1.56 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.50 billion. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.49 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Stifel Financial will post 8.26 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.51 per share. This is an increase from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on SF. UBS Group set a $100.00 price target on Stifel Financial and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Stifel Financial from $88.67 to $90.67 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wolfe Research reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $99.33 price target on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Stifel Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $92.00 price objective on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $90.13.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider David Rubulotta sold 600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.87, for a total transaction of $49,724.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 1,488 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $123,315.52. This represents a 28.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 4.57% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stifel Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Essex Financial Services Inc. raised its holdings in Stifel Financial by 4.2% during the third quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 2,533 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $287,000 after buying an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 15.0% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 811 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $102,000 after acquiring an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming increased its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 8.6% during the 3rd quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 1,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $161,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 23,449 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,936,000 after acquiring an additional 114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 6,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $757,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Stifel Financial

Stifel Financial Corp. is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm has grown into a full‐service brokerage and investment banking organization serving individual investors, corporations and institutions. Through its principal subsidiary, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, the company delivers a broad array of financial products and services backed by research‐driven insights.

The firm’s main business activities are organized into two core segments: Private Client Group and Institutional Group.